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The number of attempted murders and serious assaults against under-13s and the over-50s has also risen.

Ten years ago, there were 80 such crimes against under-13s (one per cent) and 400 against over-50s (six per cent).

But by 2017-18, those totals had risen to 110 (three per cent) and 610 (15 per cent). Scottish Conservative shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr said: “These figures highlight a particularly shocking rise in violence against women, the young and the elderly.

“The SNP can take no comfort from the high number of incidents which involve alcohol and drugs.